Tag Archives: Flying to Rio

I was knocked off my feet with the sudden firing from my job as an International Flight Attendant travelling the Dallas – Rio de Janeiro route.

I had been a valuable asset to the company in the hiring of Portuguese speaking candidates, had worked with Charlie R., the Head of the Training Department for about six months prior to becoming a Flight Attendant myself. I translated their in-flight announcement videos, such as the evacuation video, and also did the voice-overs in Portuguese. The administration was thrilled with my work, and they were getting hundreds of passenger letters praising my performance on flights once I started flying to Rio.

I was known by almost all the management of the Airline, who at one time or another would be on one of my flights. I worked mostly First Class. I was on the fast track to be promoted, possibly running the Brazilian end of things. As Charlie would say, being a Flight Attendant was just the first part of the process.

So, how could a false accusation by a man who had a habit of threatening new flight attendants and sexually harassing them, lead to a “no questions asked” immediate firing? I had no answers, and my morale was extremely low. The best thing was to get away and take advantage of Mauro’s suggestion about living in Rio. Also, I wanted to see Mauro again. We had barely started our relationship when I was fired from my job and would not be flying to Rio anymore.

Several months later, I was on a Brazilian airline, Varig, flying back to Rio. Mauro was waiting for me at the airport and it was heavenly to see him. He was even more handsome than I remembered. I stayed with Jane, the cousin of a friend of mine from Brazil, who lives in Dallas, until I could find a place within my budget. Jane and I became great friends.

Mauro helped look for apartments, but really wanted me to stay in an apartment that he owned while I was living in Rio, however, it was way above what I could afford. Finally I found a small one bedroom apartment on the sixth floor of a building about 4 blocks from Copacabana Beach. The rent was $200 a month, with maid service twice a week! I signed on the spot.

Mauro wasn’t with me that day, and I didn’t know that he was extremely fearful of heights and elevators. I wanted to show him my new place, and on the way up on the elevator he started shaking and sweating. By the time we got to my apartment he was white as a sheet and could barely breath. I felt terrible for him and soon found out that he had lots of phobias and fears.

The next revelation was that Mauro finally admitted to me that he was married, but officially separated. Because divorce was difficult in Brazil, many couples did this. It’s called a “desquite.” Neither party can re-marry and this arrangement also works well when there are children involved. I hadn’t known that Mauro had a son. Our romance had never gotten far enough for an intimate relationship, so I told him that it was best that we remain “just friends.” I did not want to be his “amante,” lover, or kept woman. This is not what a man wants to hear and we never saw each other again. I heard later that he was having serious health problems and that he had gone back to his wife.

Then I met a guy, who was not married, at Copacabana beach, José Neto, and we started dating. He was a model and therefore did not work all the time, so we had lots of fun together sightseeing, eating out, going to the beach. He was the definition of a “gentleman.” José introduced me to a singer named Paulo Gran Bell, and we started performing at different events and in several night clubs. It was fun and also helped with the cash flow.

One day I was at the Rio Palace and one of the managers told me that a celebrity from Texas was coming to Rio and would be staying there. He wondered if I would accept the job to be her interpreter and guide during her stay. Her name was Iola Johnson and I had watched her newscasts for years! She had recently quit the news station to move on to other things. I was delighted to be asked to do this. We met and right away hit it off. She spent a couple of weeks in Rio, and it was interesting, because American tourists who saw her, instantly recognized her and her famous voice.

She was a beautiful person, both on the outside as well as on the inside. On the back of this picture, she wrote: “Sandi é ótima! You’re the best thing in Rio. I wish you only the very best!” Iola.

Soon after Iola left, one of my flight attendant friends, Dee, called with the news that the airline had shut down the Dallas-Rio route, and no more flights would be coming down to Rio. She needed a favor from me. She asked that I go to the Rio Palace and get her suitcase which she always left there for her layovers. She only wanted her wristwatch and a couple of earrings. She said that I could give away the rest of her things.

Dee had travelled the entire world for years as a Flight Attendant and when she was in Rio, after I was fired, we would go out together. She was a rather eccentric person. She told me to give the “baby powder” to a very special person. I thought this was rather odd, but knowing Dee I didn’t think much about it. So, I sat out in front of the hotel and gave away all her things, including the Johnson Baby Powder.

Later she called to ask who I had given the baby powder to. I inquired about her obsession with baby powder and she said, “you didn’t know? That was pure cocaine.” She said that she and some of the other Flight Attendants did cocaine a lot during trips to stay awake. I was completely flabbergasted because I never suspected a thing during our trips, except for the fact that I wondered how they could go for three days without sleeping hardly at all. I was always exhausted after flying all night and had to sleep for a while. They would change clothes and were off to the beach or somewhere else.

I was very angry about the event, because had the police been around, I could have been arrested! I also was worried that if someone had used the “baby powder” on a baby, what could happen? I asked several doctors and they assured me that it wouldn’t hurt the baby.

After about six months in Rio, I was homesick and decided to go back to Texas. I missed pizza and Mexican food. I never felt completely at home in Rio. I had friends, but didn’t “fit in” since I was single, and was treated by some people like a rich American, which I wasn’t! I was down to my last penny. I felt alone and a bit disillusioned. José was surprised that I was leaving, but I promised I would write.

I boarded the plane and before I knew it, we were landing on American soil, in Texas.

The story does not end here. I sued the airline for sexual harassment, and found out “the rest of the story!” What happened to Roberto? Did he get away with it again and again? Why was he so powerful? There are answers in Part 4 of my story.

I had been an International Flight attendant, flying down to Rio, for about seven months and had one month of probation left. The crew members with whom I had become friends had warned me about a guy named Roberto, who flew trips as the number 1 Flight Attendant, which meant that he was in charge of all of the Attendants on his flight. I was told that he had the habit of threatening new female Flight Attendants with reporting them for breaking the rules.

According to my friends, one thing he would accuse them of was “sleeping on the job.” The flights lasted 10 hours, we flew all night, and it was paramount that we not sit down at any time and take a nap. We all knew this rule and would never risk such behavior.

I don’t remember the date, but I arrived at the airport to check in for my flight and the famed Roberto introduced himself and said that he was the No. 1 Flight Attendant on this trip. He seemed vey nice at first. He spoke English with a heavy Spanish accent and was extremely flirty. He put is arm around me and said, “Roberto will take care of you. It’s OK for you to take a nap, and I will cover for you.” I told him that I knew the rules and would definitely not take a nap, even with his permission. I was working first class that night and the Vice-President of the airline was a passenger in my area. There was also a pilot, John P., who was deadheading to Rio, and would be flying the plane back to the U. S.

After the meal service and the movie, and the passengers were sleeping, John and I had several chats. He was studying Portuguese and would ask me questions about pronunciation and the meaning of words. I never sat down, but would stop next to his seat. In the galley, Roberto continued his flirting and had his hands all over me. It was very close quarters but it was clear that he was taking advantage of the situation.

I was relieved when we finally arrived in Rio and I saw Mauro, the TV personality and reporter who I mentioned in Part I, waiting for me. As we were getting off the crew bus, Roberto approached me and said; “Call me later, I need talk to you. You must come to my room.”

Mauro noticed how Roberto was talking to me and asked what it was about. I told him about Roberto’s actions on the trip, and he was very mad. However, we forgot all about the frustrating situation and Mauro and I had a great time during the layover, as we usually did. There was so much to do and see in Rio and it was all so romantic. Everyone knew Mauro and I felt extremely special being at his side.

I avoided Roberto like the plague, and did not call him. Several times he saw Mauro and me together, and also saw him kiss me goodbye before we left on the bus for the airport. When we were on the plane going home, Roberto accosted me in the galley and was screaming, “Yu fuckeen beech, you deedn’t call me, I rreport yu, I see yu sleeep on trrip.” His accent got really bad when he was angry.

I was visibly upset, and told one of the senior flight attendants about the threats and she said not to worry, that Roberto never followed thorough with any of his threats, but that I should report the incident to my supervisor when we arrived in Dallas, which I did. The next day I was called in and fired. That was it, I had taken my last trip. I was incredulous. There was no appeal because I was still on probation.

I called Mauro and told him what had happened, and that I wouldn’t be coming back to Rio. He said that it was all for the best, because now I could come to live in Rio. I said I’d stay in touch by phone until something could be resolved, and that I would think about his suggestion. During every phone conversation he insisted that I come right away and that he loved me.

I made an appointment to talk to the Vice-President of the airline, who had been on board the night of the incident. He had complimented me after the trip on my excellent demeanor, professionalism and service. He had told me how grateful the airline was to have me as an employee, and that he could see promotions in my future.

Our meeting went nowhere. He was friendly, but said his hands were tied. He suggested that I meet with the President of the airline and also contact the pilot who had been on board. I followed his advice and contacted John and he wrote a letter to the President, and copied me, about his conversations with me during the trip and that he could see the seat that Roberto had accused me of sitting in and sleeping, and that at no time did this happen.

The President met with me, and said that he would investigate the matter. Later I received a letter in which he said that they hated to lose me, but that I was still on probation and that I could not be reinstated.

I decided to move to Rio, as Mauro had suggested.

Continued in Part 3: Would the relationship with Mauro last? What would happen to the Dallas-Rio de Janeiro route? A female American celebrity and I would become friends when she came to Rio, a dangerous situation involving drugs (not mine!)…

In 1982 I was contracted by a major airline to help in the hiring of Portuguese speakers to become Flight Attendants for the new Dallas-Rio de Janeiro route. In the process I was hired to be a Flight Attendant myself. About 100 applicants came from all over the country and only 50 had all the qualifications to enter training, but this was no guarantee that they would be hired. Many had given up jobs and some had driven from all parts of the U. S. to Dallas, once they were notified that they had been approved for the training program.

The 6-week/7 day per week training was excruciatingly hard and every day one or two of people would disappear from class. They had been told to pack their bags and leave without saying goodbye to the rest of us.

No one knew what the criteria was for not being able to complete the training, except that we had to make no less than a score of 100 on all Exams, and we took several of them each day.

During the 5th week, my training partner, Elizabeth, was sent home. She had been a Flight Attendant with Braniff before the airline went bankrupt. She spoke Portuguese and Spanish and had flown for years all over South America, including Brazil. I contacted her to ask why she had not made it, and she said that in her evaluation she was told that she did not “smile enough during evacuation exercises.”

I was one of the survivors of the cuts and graduation was so exciting! I couldn’t believe that I had a job flying back to my hometown, Rio de Janeiro.

Almost immediately, however, I heard that the “senior” flight attendants resented the “newbies” because we got the most coveted travel route, only because we spoke Portuguese. The word was out that they were going to get us fired, one by one, starting with the oldest, me! Due to my seniority, I got first choice in scheduling my trips and this was resented by the seasoned flight attendants who wanted to be able to travel to Rio, but had less opportunities to do this because they didn’t speak Portuguese.

The flight attendant crews had to be 50-50, “speakers and non-speakers.” The Portuguese speakers got to work the isles, whereas the others had to work in the galley with food preparation, setting up the carts, cleaning up and so on. The excitement about flying to Rio, dissipated quickly with the rough treatment we received from our senior crew members. We had 8 months of probation and could be fired “without cause” during this time.

The good part of the job was that we had 2 and 3 – day layovers in Rio! I became friends with the some of the senior flight attendants and several of the pilots, who loved to hang out with me on our layovers. Due to the fact that I had grown up there and was a tall Portuguese speaking blonde, I was very popular everywhere we went. We always got preferential treatment, the best tables, service, in fact we were treated like celebrities. My new friends assured me that they would “have my back” and that my job would be safe.

I loved being in Rio again. It was more beautiful than I remembered. We had great times during our layovers, sunning on Ipanema beach, sight seeing in the most beautiful city in the world, dancing in Clubs, eating out at the best restaurants…the exchange for the Brazilian “cruzado” was about 10/1 dollars, which meant that we could eat at the Churrascarias, Brazilian Steak Houses, for about $5.00 a person. The crews thought that Rio was the most exciting and romantic city in the world.

The pilots could not get over how beautiful Brazilian women were. There eyes would pop out of their heads, there was so much to see on the beaches. The women wore the tiniest of bikinis, with just a string in the back, and their “bundas,” booties, were beautiful.

There was plenty of “eye candy” for the women as well. Brazilian men would exercise on the beach, play volleyball and “futevolei,” which is a mixture between volleyball and soccer. Everyone had a “natural tan,” due to the mixture of races, and were called the “beautiful people.”

On one of the trips I met a man who was known as the “Brazilian Johnny Carson,” because he had a late night TV talk show, was silver-haired and very good looking. He started meeting us when we would arrive at the Rio Palace Hotel on Ipanema Beach, where we stayed on our layovers, and would escort me and some from “my group” all over Rio. I also got to go to his show one night.

A romance began between us and this made flying down to Rio even more exciting. Those were the days…until about seven months later, I met Roberto, who was the head flight attendant on one of my trips.